


Even Evil Queens Get the Sniffles

by appleturnoversandstrudel



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Caretaking, F/F, Season/Series 01, Sick Evil Queen | Regina Mills, childish regina
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-21
Updated: 2017-03-21
Packaged: 2018-10-08 15:53:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,822
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10390332
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/appleturnoversandstrudel/pseuds/appleturnoversandstrudel
Summary: When Regina hasn't checked in on Emma the entire morning, Emma goes to check up on her and spends the day taking care of her.





	

Emma was having the best day at work she could have ever imagined. Ruby put extra whipped cream on her hot chocolate this morning, and her bear claw was still warm as she finished gnawing on it hungrily at her desk. Crumbs were getting everywhere, all over her paperwork, but she didn't care, because no one could yell at her for it. She hadn't heard from Regina all morning, who seemed to be mysteriously absent from her office. Usually, she would have called Emma at least three times by now to make sure Emma was actually doing her job instead of slacking off and goofing around with the dart board Graham had installed into the office. Apparently the fact that Emma was _this close_ to beating her all time high score did not interest Regina. No; she just wanted her tedious paperwork filled out and filed by the end of the day.

So, to have the entire morning blissfully Regina-free both excited and perplexed Emma. On the one hand, she was free to do as she pleased (which truthfully, involved mostly darts and very little glancing exasperatedly at paperwork). On the other…this wasn't like Regina at all. Could there be something wrong? She decided to check up on Regina during her lunch break, and crumpled up the greasy bear claw wrapper, swishing it cleanly into the trashcan; then picked up the dart that remained on her desk. Right now, if she could get that one last dart to stick…yes! She beat her high score! After doing a quick victory dance, she made her way back to her desk. Regina might not be in her office today, but if she didn't get her work done, Emma would be getting reamed out tomorrow.

Finally, after what seemed like years, Emma finished signing the last piece of paperwork and placed it in its corresponding folder. Her lunch break had started ten minutes ago, but with no one to check up on her, she figured she could take as long as she needed. Besides, checking up on Regina seemed more important. Somehow, Emma figured that if Regina was in trouble and Emma hadn't checked up on her, it would be blamed on her, no matter how illogical that may seem.

On her way out of the sheriff's office, she went to see Henry, whose class was outside for recess. He was sitting on the swing-set, kicking his feet up and down, and grinned broadly when he saw her. He immediately jumped off the swing and eagerly ran over to meet his birth mother.

"Emma, hi, what are you doing here?" He asked excitedly. Emma didn't usually come to visit him during recess. "Is something wrong?"

"As a matter of fact, kid, there could be," Emma said, ruffling his hair and accepting his hug as she talked. "Have you seen your mom?"

Henry chewed on his lip as he thought; a mannerism he must have picked up from his adoptive mother. "Yeah, I saw her this morning. She was drinking her coffee at the counter, just like she does every morning, but she didn't have her briefcase next to the door like usual. I did hear her sniffling, though. Maybe she's not feeling well and decided to stay home."

"Because of the sniffles?" Emma looked skeptical. "Kid, I don't think anything less than World War III would keep your mom home from work." Henry raised an eyebrow at her.

"She was wearing sweat pants and a hoodie" As Henry uttered that statement, Emma's belief that it was more than just a harmless case of the sniffles was confirmed. "She doesn't even wear anything more casual than jeans when we're having movie night at home."

"Oh man, kid, she must really be feeling lousy. Tell you what; how about you go to the arcade after school? It's right across from Granny's, so you'll be able to get food when you get hungry. Here." Emma rummaged through her pocket and fished out a few wrinkled bills and some change. "That should get you through at least the arcade. If you owe anything at the diner, tell Ruby I'll pay her back later. I just don't want you around the house in case your mom's contagious." The bell rang over the PA system, signaling that recess was over. "Better get back to class now, kid. You know my number if you need anything."

"Okay, thanks, bye Emma," Henry called back as he ran off toward class. Emma waved goodbye, then sighed. That was the easy part. Now for the hard bit: seeing what was going on with Madam Mayor.

Emma pulled up to the curb next to Regina's house. After locking up her bug, she walked up the walkway to the front door and rang the doorbell. No response. She tried again, thinking maybe Regina hadn't heard the first time. Still nothing. Then, she jiggled the doorknob to see if maybe in his haste Henry had left the door unlocked. No; the kid was good. Sighing she pulled out the emergency key Henry had given her a couple weeks ago and let herself in. She figured that if Regina was really so ill that she couldn't open the door, she wouldn't mind someone coming in to check up on her.

"Regina?" Emma called, her voice floating up the stairs as she climbed them and made her way toward Regina's bedroom, having seen no evidence of life downstairs and presuming Regina must be holed up in her bed. "You there? Are you sleeping?" At least if Regina was sleeping, it'd explain why she wasn't getting any answers. Slightly apprehensive about what she'd find by this point, Emma slowly opened the master bedroom door and allowed light to peer through the crack.

The entire room was dark. Crumpled up Kleenex and cough drop wrappers littered the bed, upon which blankets were strewn every which way. A precarious tower of tissues was perched upon her nightstand, threatening to fall over at the slightest provocation, right next to a bottle of cough syrup and what appeared to be a now drained mug of tea with the tag from the teabag sticking out. A half emptied jar of VapoRub rolled lazily across the floor, clearly having fallen off the nightstand very recently.

And in the middle of all this chaos lay one Regina Mills, in a disheveled state that Emma had never witnessed before. She was indeed wearing sweatpants and a hoodie, but it was next to impossible to tell from all the blankets under which she had buried herself. Her blankets were pulled up all the way to her chin, and despite the sweaty sheen that covered her face and stuck her mussed hair to it, she shivered, teeth rattling inside her mouth. All of the color had been drained from her skin, giving her an unnatural pallor.

Emma's eyes grew wide and her jaw dropped as she took in the scene before her. Yikes; this was a lot more serious than just a case of the sniffles. Regina seemed seriously incapacitated.

The sick woman lifted up one hand to shield her eyes from the bright light, squinting and groaning weakly in response to Emma's entrance.

"Man, Regina; you look like death warmed over," Emma blurted out, then clapped a hand over her mouth.

"Yes, insult the sick person. I'm sure that's exactly how to approach someone who's under the weather," Regina retorted tiredly.

Emma cringed. "Regina?" She began tentatively. "I take it you're not feeling well?"

The brunette used what was left of her strength to roll her eyes at her. "How very…astute…Miss Swan. I see…your powers…of observation are…as keen as ever."The statement's sting was softened by the dry coughs that punctuated every few words or so.

Emma bit back her retort, reminding herself that it was wrong to make fun of those who couldn't defend themselves; although a little voice in her head did argue that if Regina Mills' mental faculties were this sharp now, nothing less than hospitalization would prevent her from arguing with her.

"Point taken, Madam Mayor," Emma raised her hands in defeat. She began to cross the room, picking up stray debris that lay in her path. At last, she was at Regina's bed, and her hands were full of crumpled dirty tissues. She went into the bathroom to throw them out, and Regina barely squeaked in protest, when normally she would have detailed exactly why this was a gross breach in etiquette.

When Emma walked back into the bedroom empty handed, she took another look at Regina. Her eyes were slightly watery, and her nose reddened around the bottom where she had undoubtedly assaulted it with tissues in order to stop it from running. Suddenly, Emma was hit by a pungent menthol smell that permeated her nostrils.

"Ugh, Regina, is that the VapoRub?" Emma wrinkled her nose. "Did you use the entire jar or something?"

"It helps decongest my sinuses, Miss Swan. I apologize that my efforts to improve my condition have inconvenienced your olfactory system." Despite the severity of her condition, Regina's sarcasm was as biting as ever.

 _Well, I guess she's not as bad as I thought she was,_ thought Emma with a sigh. "Okay…so I guess your sinuses are unclogged now." Emma gave a nervous laugh as she gestured to the tissue boxes still dangerously close to collapse. Quickly, she straightened out the tower. She continued observing Regina in perfect silence for a few minutes until Regina finally spoke.

"What do you want, Miss Swan? I am assuming you didn't come all the way to my house with the intention of picking up my bedroom floor." She tried to prop up her head on the pillow, but thought better of it and lay back down.

"Henry said you weren't feeling well, so I came to check up on you," Emma explained. "But I didn't realize you were doing so badly. If you want, I can take the rest of the day off work and stay here with you; you know, make sure you don't accidentally boil to death in those blankets or something," she offered with a slight chuckle.

Regina shook her head, the motion clearly making her dizzy. "While I appreciate the gesture, Miss Swan, it won't be necessary. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of my own infirmity." After concluding this statement, she succumbed to a violent coughing fit that had her bent over at the waist for a few minutes.

"Yes, obviously you are doing just fine, Regina. Healthy people always hunch over and cough for five minutes straight after covering their bed with used tissues." The sarcasm in her words had concern, not spite, underscoring it. "Just let me stay here and help. What's the worst that could happen?"

"Your incompetence could destroy my house and leave Henry and me homeless, forcing us to stay at Granny's and severely impeding Henry's education," Regina replied, completely serious.

"Well I'll do my best not to wreck your house, then," Emma said, marveling at the older woman's dogged dislike for her, then crossed her fingers in a Girl Scout gesture. "Scout's honor".

"I highly doubt you were a Girl Scout, Miss Swan." Either Regina was so sick that she didn't get Emma's meaning, or she was purposely choosing to ignore it in order to annoy the younger woman.

"You sound ridiculous, do you realize that?" Emma asked, her exasperation climbing to its breaking point. Regina could be so infuriating.

"I _feel_ ridiculous, Miss Swan; it's to be expected." She gave one more cough before lying back down on the pillow. Emma sighed. It was obvious that if she were going to stay, it would be up to her to decide that.

"Look, Regina; you're obviously not feeling well. Let me stay here and take care of you." Regina appeared unconvinced. Emma decided to go for the heavy artillery. "You adopted Henry when he was a baby and took care of him his entire life. When's the last time anyone took care of you? Just let me stay and make you some tea and soup or something. Think of it as a small thank you for everything you've done over the years".

Regina considered the point. "For ten years, ten uninterrupted years, Miss Swan, I did everything for Henry. I changed every diaper, soothed every fever, and calmed every nightmare. Do you really believe that you watching over me for a couple hours will come even remotely close to repaying that debt?" Emma shrugged and smiled warmly at her.

"Of course, not Regina, but it's a start, and it's better than what I've been doing so far. Yeah, I'm in your debt, but consider this a down payment." Regina mulled over her response, pulling herself up on the pillow and letting out a nasty sounding cough.

"I suppose there are worse things than you being in my house and taking care of me," she acquiesced begrudgingly, realizing that she wouldn't be able to get out of bed and do anything for herself for the time being. "Now about that tea you mentioned…"

Emma sprang to attention, grabbing the empty mug off the nightstand and practically sprinting toward the door. "Uh, yeah, of course, Regina. Where do you…" she trailed off awkwardly, not wanting to make a fool of herself by asking something as silly as where she kept the tea. "I'll get right on that," she amended, heading out the door.

"Chamomile is in the left cabinet next to the stove," Regina called after her, then sank back into her blankets, tired from her exertion, and waited for Emma to come back with the tea.

A few minutes later, Emma came back with a clean mug full of piping hot tea. The chamomile smelled soothing as it wafted through the air. As congested as she was, Regina could still smell some of the sweet, bright liquid, and smiled.

Emma noticed her reaction and smiled in return. "I put in some lemon and honey. Hope you don't mind; that's the way I drink it when my throat hurts, and it always makes me feel better."

Regina shook her head slowly. "Not at all, Miss Swan," she replied, but her voice had softened considerably from its harshness earlier. "That's how I drink it as well".

"Great." Emma set the mug down on the nightstand. Regina looked at her expectantly. What was she waiting for? Oh; did she want Emma to give her the tea? Emma held out the mug questioningly. Regina quickly shook her head.

"Can you help me? My hand-eye coordination isn't exactly ideal at the moment, and the last thing I need is to spill hot tea all over myself," Regina requested timidly, sounding almost like a child. Emma chuckled, seeing right through all of her justifications to the little girl who just wanted to be nurtured.

"Sure, Regina." She took the mug off the nightstand, and scooped a spoonful up and toward Regina's mouth, which opened eagerly to accept the proffered tea.

All of a sudden, the hot tea hit her tongue, scalding it. Regina pouted, scrunching up her features adorably.

"Ow! That's hot!" She exclaimed in pain, sticking out her tongue and fanning it with her hand.

"Sorry…I'll blow on it next time," Emma apologized, blowing carefully on the next spoonful before bringing it towards Regina's mouth.

"Owwww!" Regina wailed. "Ouchie in my mouth!" Apparently being sick turned Regina into a whiny eight-year-old. "Can't we wait for it to cool down before I drink it?" She suggested hopefully.

Emma shook her head. "It won't do you any good if it's cold. Hot tea soothes your throat. Cold tea just tastes weird. Your choice."

"Then how about I just wait a little bit until it stops burning my mouth?" Regina asked, eyes shining brightly in what Emma could only assume was a patented puppy face. Remarkable. Taking care of her made her childish. Emma filed that information away for a later date.

"Okay, Regina," Emma said, putting the tea back on the nightstand. "But you have to drink it soon, or else it won't work," Emma found herself addressing the mayor as if she were in fact a child. Shockingly, Regina didn't object to the treatment, nodding eagerly.

Finally, Emma deemed the tea sufficiently tepid for Regina's wounded tongue and spooned it, bit by bit, carefully into her mouth. It tasted so delicious that at the end, Regina yanked the mug out of her hand and downed the rest in one go, holding the mug firmly with both hands.

"That was the best tea I've ever tasted," she declared as she settled back into her nest of blankets.

"I'm glad to hear that." Emma smiled, taking the mug from Regina and putting it aside to bring downstairs later. "Does your throat feel better?"

"Well, it doesn't scratch as much right now. The honey must be doing its job," Regina explained.

"Yes, I suppose so." Emma smiled. "You want me to tuck you into your blankets?"

"Yes please," Regina replied politely, burrowing into the sheets and waiting expectantly for Emma to tuck her in, which she did, fussing carefully over the blankets until Regina was tucked in to her satisfaction. The new arrangement allowed Emma to see Regina's face in its entirety, the blankets only going up to her shoulders. She didn't want Regina to overheat, especially not in that hoodie.

"Hey, Emma?" Regina asked shyly. Emma wasn't sure which shocked her more: the fact that Regina finally referred to her by her first name, or the demureness of her tone whilst doing so.

"Yeah, Regina. What's the matter?" Emma's tone was considerably softer with the mayor now, viewing her entirely as a child who needed her help.

"Um…I haven't eaten anything all day due to my stomach being upset and all, and, um, I'm a bit hungry now." Regina blushed slightly, as though embarrassed by this. "Would you mind following through on what you said earlier and bringing me some soup?"

"Of course, Regina. Nothing helps a cold like some warm chicken soup, I'll be right back," Emma reassured her as she headed downstairs.

Realizing she couldn't make heads or tails of Regina's kitchen, Emma had to do some improvising. Pulling out her cell phone, she quickly dialed Ruby.

"Hey Ruby, it's Emma," she greeted. "I have a really big favor I need to ask you."

"Yeah, Emma, shoot; what's up?" Ruby asked, clearly curious as to what this big favor could entail.

"Well, I'm at the mayor's and she's not doing too well. She's been laid up sick in bed all day. Could you maybe bring some of your Granny's famous chicken soup to make her feel better?" Emma laid it on thick, knowing that a little flattery never hurt her cause.

"I see…so do you need the soup because you couldn't find Regina's cooking supplies, or because your culinary skills aren't up to making a batch of your own?" Ruby asked cheekily, enjoying the torture.

"Shut up, Ruby," Emma said, clearly indicating it was the second. "Can you bring the soup or not?"

"Sure, Emma. I'll be there soon. But you'll owe me," she warned.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Thanks, Ruby; you're amazing," Emma said.

"I know I am. I'll be right there." And with that, Ruby ended the call.

Finally, about 20 minutes later, she walked into the bedroom with a steaming hot bowl of chicken soup.

"Mmm, that smells wonderful," Regina sighed, inhaling as much as she could through her congested sinuses. "To be entirely honest, I'm surprised you managed to find everything in my kitchen and whip it up. You don't strike me as the cooking type," she admitted, smiling.

"That's because I'm not," Emma confessed. "I actually called Ruby up and got her to deliver some of Granny's chicken soup. It was a fresh batch, so it's still warm and everything. Oh, and she says she hopes you feel better."

"Tell Miss Lucas thank you on both accounts," Regina said. She patted the bed next to her. "Come, sit."

Emma sat on Regina's bed, awkwardly at first, not quite sure this was really happening. The bowl of soup was still in her hands.

"Can you feed it to me?" Regina requested. "My hand-eye coordination…"

"Isn't very good right now; sure, Regina," Emma smirked. Regina could justify it however she wanted; she just wanted to be pampered right now, and Emma was glad to oblige. Actually, she found it kind of silly that Regina had to fabricate some ridiculous pretense in order to feel okay about the situation, but she supposed that the brunette had her reasons. It didn't bother Emma one bit. If someone's sick, you take care of them. That's what she learned in the system, and what she'd always practiced.

"Thanks." Regina smiled. "Don't forget to blow on it first," she reminded Emma seriously. "I don't want to burn my mouth again."

"You got it, Regina," Emma said, scooping up a spoonful of soup and blowing on it demonstratively before directing it to Regina's mouth, which opened eagerly to accept the warm, comforting soup. It was full of chicken and soft vegetables and spices Regina's blunted taste buds couldn't identify.

"This is amazing. I must remember to ask Granny for her recipe once I'm better," Regina mused, obediently eating one spoonful after another.

Emma laughed as she continued to spoon feed the mayor. "I doubt she'll give it to you. Ruby says it's an old family recipe, passed down from generation to generation. Getting it will probably cost you like a kidney, or your soul, or something," she joked.

"Or my heart?" Regina quipped cynically. "You know what Henry says about me. He says I'm the Evil Queen." Her eyes searched Emma for any sign of disagreement.

"Oh Regina, you know those are just kids' stories," Emma dismissed this concern with a wave of her hand. "There's no such thing as Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, or an Evil Queen who tried to take her heart out. That's just stuff we tell kids to get them to fall asleep at night. So you won't let Henry go to the arcade every day or eat junk food. Kids get upset over that stuff; they overreact. Especially someone in Henry's situation." Emma immediately clamped up, not wanting to give away more than she was sure she could trust Regina with. Sure, she was willing to take care of her when she was sick, but she doubted she could tell her about her insecurities over being a foster kid.

Obviously relieved, Regina sighed. "I suppose you're right. Henry is a wonderfully imaginative child. I can see how it could run away with him." Emma smiled in agreement, remembering his passion for Operation Cobra.

"Don't worry, Regina. You keep him in line, but you care about him, right?" Regina nodded fervently.

"With all my heart. I love Henry more than my own life," she stated with conviction.

"See, then you're fine."

Regina nodded, clearly put at ease, before tensing up again.

"Oh, dear, Henry! What time is it? Where is he? Is he okay? How could I forget about my own son?" Regina questioned rapid-fire, a litany of concerns pouring out of her mouth.

"Well first of all, it's only 1, so he's still at school. I told him to go to Granny's after school ended. There's no sense in him getting infected by whatever it is you have, and he can't stay at my place, since I'm here and Mary Margaret's-". What Mary Margaret was actually doing was going on a date with David, but something told her not to tell Regina that. "Mary Margaret's busy," she finished lamely.

"Okay. Thanks for looking out for him."

"Of course. He's my son too, and I care about the kid." Regina was too focused on swallowing the last of the soup to argue the point of whose son Henry was with Emma. All she could do was nod silently as the last empty spoon came out of her mouth.

"There, all done. I'm surprised you got that all down. The way you've been feeling all day, I thought you'd only be able to stomach a couple spoonfuls at most," Emma said, pleasantly surprised.

"What can I say; I must have been hungry." Regina shrugged. "Being sick takes a lot out of you, you know."

Emma chuckled. "It sure does. How about I let you get a little rest. You could probably use it."

Regina nodded gratefully. "Thanks. You're not about to leave, are you?" The childlike note crept back into Regina's voice at the possibility of abandonment.

"I'm staying, Regina," Emma reassured her. "Someone has to take care of you, since you sure can't do it yourself."

"Funny," Regina responded. "Make yourself at home while you're here."

"Sure thing," Emma said. "Call me if you need anything. I'll be right down the hall." With that, she exited the room.

She barely made it halfway down the hall before she heard Regina calling her name.

"Emma," Regina whined. "I don't feel so good." There was something funny about her voice, like she was restraining herself. Emma's eyes widened as she put two and two together.

"I'll be right there!" she yelled. Quickly she scrambled down the stairs and into the kitchen, scrounging through various cabinets before coming upon a big metal mixing bowl. Perfect. She ran back up the stairs, only tripping over herself twice in her hurry, and straight to Regina's bedroom.

"I'm here, I have a bowl," she said, surveying the bed. It appeared as clean as when she'd left. Good. Regina had at least been able to hold back this long.

"Give it," she said weakly, grabbing it out of Emma's outstretched hand and holding it in front of her before emptying the contents of her stomach into it. A sharp, acidic odor rose up from the bowl.

"Gross." Emma scrunched up her nose. "I'll go dump that and bring it right back".

Regina proceeded to vomit a few more times before Emma was sure that she'd gotten it out of her system for the time being. Exhausted, she collapsed back into bed and closed her eyes, indicating her desire to sleep.

Emma respected her wishes, leaving the room and going downstairs to wash the bowl. After it had been properly sanitized, she returned it to its place and went upstairs, intending to take a nap of her own in a guest bedroom before her curiosity got the better of her.

Opening the door to Henry's room, she found it in the expected condition of a ten-year-old boy's room; basically, looking like a tornado hit it and swept everything on the floor in a jumble.

She knew it was wrong to snoop and break the boy's privacy, but something Regina had said earlier had piqued her interest. Was it possible there was a grain of truth to Henry's tales? Emma immediately scolded herself for even considering that something so preposterous could be true, but something nagged at the back of her head.

The corner of the book was peeking out from under the corner of the pillow. Sneaky kid. He didn't want Regina seeing it. She'd probably take it away from him because it painted her in a bad light.

Taking it out, she brought it to a guest bedroom and opened it up. Truth be told, she was sure he would have taken it to school with him, but apparently he'd decided to leave it at home today and stick it in a hiding place instead. It wasn't a very good hiding place, but Regina respected his privacy more than she did and didn't go snooping around. Whoops. At least she wasn't doing it to get him in trouble.

She opened up the book and began flipping through the pages, just to get a feel for the stories. There was the stuff she knew: the Evil Queen hated Snow White, Prince Charming was her true love, everyone was afraid of the wolf, Jiminy Cricket was a conscience, yada yada yada. But there were also some eye-opening plot twists: the Evil Queen, which bore a striking resemblance to Regina, if you took away the gowns and elaborate hairdos, had lost her love as a child; the magic mirror (who looked suspiciously like Sidney) was in love with her; Little Red Riding Hood, who looked like a tamer Ruby, was also the wolf; and Jiminy, who reminded Emma of the jumpy Dr. Hopper (Emma rolled her eyes at the pun she made) was originally a human.

Could it be…? Nah. It was too insane to be true. Really, who could imagine Regina ripping someone's heart out? Not that she wasn't mad enough to at times, but she would never do such a crazy thing. And then, Ruby terrorizing the town? The only time that happened was when she overslept and the morning regulars didn't get their coffee. Or Dr. Hopper serenading the summertime evenings? Just plain ridiculous.

Emma closed the book, deciding to put such thoughts out of her mind. She didn't want to think that the suffering woman in the other room was the Evil Queen. Could evil queens even get colds? Emma didn't know the answer to that question, and she wasn't willing to find out.

She went back to Regina's bedroom to find the woman still slumbering away. Regina looked so peaceful in sleep. Her features were more youthful and relaxed, free from all her daily cares. Emma sat down in a chair across from the bed and just watched Regina as she slept, comforted by the sight. Smiling, she got up and tucked a strand of dark hair back behind Regina's ear, out of her face, and then pressed a soft kiss to her forehead.

Suddenly, she heard Regina gasp and open her eyes. Slowly, the brunette turned her head to face Emma, who looked appropriately sheepish at being caught in such a silly act.

"Regina, I-" Emma stumbled about for a good explanation as to why she was had just kissed her, when Regina smiled. Relieved, Emma sighed.

"I trust you were able to find a way to entertain yourself while I slept?" Regina asked curiously. Her previous childishness was gone; the nap must have energized her enough to bring her back to her usual self.

"I, yeah," Emma answered. "I actually just came back in here a couple minutes ago." It was a lie; she'd been watching over her for a good half hour, but if she told her that, it would sound creepy.

"Good," Regina purred, sounding more like her old self. She tried to sit up, and this time found she could keep her head upright without feeling dizzy. Satisfied, she smiled.

"I'm feeling much better, Miss Swan." Emma was ready to take that and run with it, feeling like that was the best expression of gratitude she'd get out of her "Thank you."

This caught Emma by surprise. "Uh, you're welcome, Regina. Anytime." She smiled, taking her hand and squeezing it reassuringly.

Regina smiled back. "Is Henry still at Granny's?"

"Yeah, he's fine, he texted me a little while ago. Are you feeling well enough to get out of bed?"

Regina thought about it. "I think so; just give me a couple minutes to get my bearings." Soon, she pulled off the covers, not shivering nearly as much as Emma expected her to. She dragged herself out of the bed painstakingly slowly, and pulled out a pair of fuzzy slippers. At Emma's amused smirk, she glared.

"They're only for when I'm sick- I only wear them in here," she tried to justify, failing miserably. "Not a word to anyone, or I will-"

"You'll destroy me; yeah, I know, Regina. I've heard it all before," Emma said, sounding bored.

Regina appeared rather taken aback. "That's not what I was going to say!" She paused for a second to think up a suitable alibi. "What I was going to say was that I'd tell people they were a gift from you after you got tired of them." She smiled wickedly.

"Touché, Madam Mayor," Emma acknowledged with a nod."But hey, you got out of bed!"

"That I did." Regina smiled at the encouragement. "And now, if you will excuse me, I need to use the restroom."

Emma smirked, still thinking of Regina's fuzzy slippers. Who'd have thought the fierce mayor would have something so…comfortable? _Guess there's more to her than I thought._

Regina emerged from the bathroom, looking much better. Her skin had regained most of its usual coloring, taking away the eerie resemblance to Casper the Friendly Ghost she had earlier, and the light in her eyes sparkled as brightly as ever.

"I'm glad to see you back to yourself, Regina," Emma said sincerely.

"Yes; I suppose it must have been one of those 24-hour stomach bugs that's been going around," Regina said shrugging.

"That would do it," Emma replied, picking up her jacket from where she had draped it over the chair. "Well, if you're doing better, I guess I'll be on my way then."

Regina waved away her flimsy farewell. "Nonsense, Emma. It's getting to be around dinnertime. Why don't you stay and have dinner with me and Henry? I'm still not up to cooking, I'm afraid, but I did freeze some lasagna from the other night. It's simple enough to reheat."

"Oh no, I don't want to impose," Emma began to protest.

" You're not imposing. I wanted to thank you for taking care of me." Upon seeing that Emma was still unconvinced, Regina played her ace. "I'm sure it would make Henry happy."

"Well for Henry, I'd do anything," Emma replied with a smile, putting her jacket back down. Her stomach gave a quiet grumble. "I guess I'll go put that lasagna in the oven and text Henry to come home. You're sure you're feeling better?" she questioned suspiciously.

"Yes! I'm much better, honestly." Regina smiled brightly, lighting up her eyes and softening their ebony to a chocolate brown. "Do you really think I'd risk infecting my own son?"

"Okay, okay." Emma raised her hands in defeat. "How long do I heat up the lasagna for?"

"Forty-five minutes at 350⁰." Regina answered.

"Thanks. You know" Emma stopped at the door. "I'm kind of glad this happened. I mean, not you being sick, but us, spending time together and not wanting to tear out each other's throats." Regina chuckled at the image.

"It certainly is a refreshing change of pace. And I'm sure Henry would appreciate it too." Emma's stomach rumbled more insistently. "I'll get dressed in actual clothes and you go heat up the food. It's time you tried the best lasagna you've ever tasted."

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact: This piece was kind of inspired by 2x11 of HIMYM where Robin takes care of a sick Barney. For anyone who caught the resemblance, it was intentional.


End file.
